EVENTS

Cool Stuff Friday.

Images courtesy the artists.

Take a few moments from your day to get acquainted with Botanica, a blend of music, art, and science.

In 2012, Italian music group Deproducers launched a project of science-related albums, with the first, Planetario, exploring the topic of astrophysics. For their second musical science project, Botanica, Deproducers brought back the design studio Super Symmetry to create a multimedia live performance that highlights the beauty and artistic wonder of plants by merging music and scientific data. All told, there are 30 videos for Botanica, exploring things like plant roots, psychoactivity, and deforestation, amongst other topics, by way of grids, video footage, graphics, information, generative animation, and other visuals. Like Data Garden’s bio-reactive installation, Quartet, Botanica elevates the natural wonder of plants to a plane equal with human creativity.

While Planetario featured a collaboration with astrophysicist Fabio Peri, Botanica includes a collaboration with botanist Stefano Mancuso. During the live show, before the band begins to play, Mancuso gives a brief “science lesson” about the songs, and how each of the topics are interlinked. For each live show, Super Symmetry is tasked with visually integrating the musical and scientific aspects of the project.

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Other tourists arrived, unsurprisingly, with more hardened attitudes, including one boy, seemingly of about 12, who sported a wary look and a T-shirt that said, “Build that fucking wall,” with an American flag. He led an even younger girl through the crowd and then vanished.

I am sure the 12 year-old can be counted on to treat the girl with respect.

Another Trump supporter — also wearing a shirt with an American flag on it — arrived at the very end of the performance, too late to interrupt a moment of silence but in time to boo loudly at the crowd as it clapped and chanted, “You’ve got to save the NEA!” Responding to his cries, Robin Laverne Wilson promptly led the Stop Shopping Choir in a song: the text of the First Amendment set to music. The Trump supporter cupped his hands over his mouth and shouted, at the top of his lungs, “Loser!” But Wilson had a tambourine, and others were clapping, and they out-sung him.

The supporter is what 45 has unleashed on the country. Brainless follower who sees no value in anything that is not like him.